What Are OER?
"Open Educational Resources (OER) are learning, teaching, and research materials in any format and medium that reside in the public domain or are under copyright that have been released under an open license, that permit no-cost access, re-use, re-purpose, adaptation, and redistribution by others." - UNESCO (Open Educational Resources)
View the panel on the left titled "The 5 Rs of OER" for more information on how you can engage with OER.
- OER MythbustingDebunking the top myths about OER in North American higher education.
- OER MythsExplore common OER myths, misperceptions, and potential barriers.
When you're looking at options for using OER in your course, you have a few options: you can choose to adopt materials as-is, adapt materials to better meet your needs, or create new materials to share openly with other instructors. Use the following tabs to learn more about each of these options.
Created by Iowa State University Library. Available here.
Adopt
Adopting is the easiest way to implement OER in your course. Just like any other instructional material: if you like it, use it! You can locate OER available in your discipline using the resources on this guide, or by setting up a consultation with a librarian.
Adapt/Remix
If you are unable to find an OER that meets your needs as-is, you have other options! Because OER are openly licensed, you can edit and adapt the materials to meet your needs. This can include small and larger changes.
For example, if you've found an OER that meets most of your needs but is too comprehensive for the level you teach, you can create a condensed version for your students by deleting the content you don't cover in your course.
Alternately, if there are many OER available for your course but none covers the needs of your course, you may want to consider building an "OER course pack," a selection of various OER, free online materials, and websites which make up the resources for use in a course. Like traditional course packs, these sets of materials can be extremely versatile and adaptable for different uses.
Create
If there are no high-quality OER available on your topic or if you have course materials that you believe are superior to the OER available to you online, you may want to consider creating or licensing your own course materials. Creating OER can be as simple as openly licensing and sharing your lesson plans online, or they can be as complex as publishing a traditional textbook.
If you're interested in publishing an open textbook, please fill out our request a consultation form by clicking the button below.
How do I Get Started?
If you're looking to learn more about open educational resources (OER), find OER to use in your course, or create an OER for your course, start by requesting a consultation with a librarian by clicking the button below!
Why use OER?
Creating, using, and sharing OER is beneficial to organizations, faculty members, and students alike. Read below for reasons why!
Organization Benefits
- Creates more research and collaboration opportunities
- Contributes to student success and retention
- Aligns with institutional goals and values
Faculty Benefits
- Provides control over content and presentation
- Allows customization and flexibility with multimedia
- Enhances student learning outcomes
Student Benefits
- Saves money on the cost of textbooks
- Expands access to knowledge
- Facilitates learning from diverse materials
Adapted from Adil, H. M., Ali, S., Sultan, M., Ashiq, M., & Rafiq, M. (2024). Open education resources’ benefits and challenges in the academic world: a systematic review. Global Knowledge, Memory and Communication, 73(3), 274-291.
Brockport OER Program
Brockport is participating in the 2024-25 SUNY-wide initiative for faculty adopting open educational resources (OER). The program is designed to help keep textbook costs affordable, particularly in high enrollment courses. Both full time and adjunct faculty are eligible. Instructors are asked to consult with a librarian and submit a revised OER syllabus.
Brockport OER faculty requirements:
1. majority (at least 51%) of course materials are OER
2. commit to using OER materials in the course for three years
3. participate in pre and post surveys of students and faculty regarding OER use
4. complete an Open Education Resources (OER) Course Development form.
For more information, contact Mary Jo Orzech (morzech@brockport.edu)
Introduction to OER
- The OER Starter KitThis free online starter kit has been created to provide instructors with an introduction to the use and creation of open educational resources (OER). The text is broken into five sections: Getting Started, Copyright, Finding OER, Teaching with OER, and Creating OER. Although some chapters contain more advanced content, the starter kit is primarily intended for users who are entirely new to Open Education.
- SUNY OER ServicesSOS works directly with SUNY campuses and faculty to provide assistance and knowledge to support the adoption of open educational resources (OER) and sustained use of OER as drivers of faculty choice and student success.
Additional Ways to Lower Course Costs
Library resources might not be OER, but they are still a great way for faculty members to reduce course costs for students. Here are some things that you can do:
- Choose an Open Educational Resource (OER).
- Select multiple OER and create a custom course text rather than requiring students to purchase multiple books.
- Choose a text that is a library licensed eBook.
- Link to articles that are available through Drake Memorial Library's subscriptions.
- Course Reserves at the LibraryDonate a copy of your course text, or ask the library to purchase it, and place it and any required readings on reserve in the library.
- Library LiaisonsIf you need assistance on any of the above, reach out to your department's library liaison!
- The Faculty Role in College Affordability: Syllabus Creation and Resource AffordabilityThis study examines how instructors consider resource cost and availability when creating course syllabi. Using Lattuca and Stark's academic planning model, it finds differences in the use of books, chapters, articles, and videos across disciplines and highlights a lack of familiarity with fair use. It concludes that consulting library staff can help provide affordable, fair use compliant materials for students.
URL: https://library.brockport.edu/OER
